An Israeli soldier was shot dead by Palestinian gunfire on the Gaza border today, the army said, raising fears of a new conflict with the strip's Islamist rulers Hamas.
The soldier, who was not identified, was shot by a "terrorist squad" along the border, the army said in a statement, with the military retaliating with air strikes.
He was the first Israeli killed since Palestinian protests were launched on the border with the Jewish state on March 30.
At least 149 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly shot during demonstrations and clashes along the border, but others in Israeli air strikes or by tank fire.